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Show f STAR I DUST Movie Radio J By VIRGINIA VALE IT HAS always been difficult diffi-cult to get permission to visit studios in Hollywood. From now on, popular comedians come-dians like the Marx Brothers, Jack Benny, and Burns and Allen hope to make it impossible. impos-sible. In fact, if there were any way that they could make pictures without having a flock of carpenters, electricians, electri-cians, property men, and extras ex-tras around, they would be heartily in favor of adopting it. Thieves on the set are the reason for all this uproar. It would be bad enough If the thieves merely lifted Jewelry, or furs, but these thieves steal ideas whose worth cannot be estimated unless you can think in staggeringly big figures. When comedians co-medians and their gag men have finally fi-nally worked out a funny situation and filmed it, two months may elapse before it is shown on the screen. But almost at once comedians come-dians .elsewhere introduce their funny situation. Obviously, someone some-one from the studio told them about it but who? It is always gratifying to see a real trouper win out over all odds. That is why every- one is rejoicing over Alice Faye's hit In "On the Avenue." When Irving Berlin moved Into the Twentieth " Century-Fox Century-Fox studio with a knockout musical score under his arm, the studio officials said, "We've got something big here." So. they de- ajjee ry. elded to build up a marvelous cast with players borrowed bor-rowed from other studios. They got Dick Powell from Warner's and Madeleine Carroll from Walter Wanger Productions for the leading roles. And then their own Alice Faye in a secondary role walked off with all honors that weren't taken by the crazy antics of their own Ritz Brothers. A long time ago Paramount bought story called "Eaay Money" Mon-ey" for Carole Lombard, but she has been so busy on other pictures she never got around to make It Meanwhile the studio officials have been impressed by the bounding popularity of Jean Arthur and decided de-cided she would do nicely In the leading role. For months Cary Grant has gone around saying that if his Paramount contract would only come to an end, he would never sign another with anybody. He would Just make pictures pic-tures when he felt like it and spend the rest of his time lying on the beach at Santa Monica or taking leisurely trips to England. But after watching hla work in the new Grace Moore picture, Columbia officials didn't like his idea at alL They decided de-cided they must have him under contract No one hat ever bee known to win an argument with Jack Conn, the grand mogul of Columbia Co-lumbia Pictures, so Cary signed tho contract he offered. Back In New Tork all the young stage players and all the dramatic school students go to see Greta Garbo In "Camllle" over and over. Two girls who are living on a tiny budget that permits eating only now and then and never riding on street car or bus, had gone every Ccy for six days and seen the picture pic-ture at least 14 times. They were broke and hungry, but they felt they Just bad to see it again. So, they screwed op their courage and told the manager of the Capitol theater bow much they were learning from watching her, and he arranged to let them in free. . . Deanna Durbin, the fourteen-year-old sensation of Eddie Cantor's radio program and Universale "Three Smart Girls" thinks New Yorkers aren't very good mathematicians. mathema-ticians. She realized her lifelong ambition ambi-tion of climbing the stairs inside the Statue of Liberty on her first visit to New York a few weeks ago. But the sign at Deanna the foot of the steep, Durbin winding stairs said there were 161 steps, and Deanna counted 165. Determinedly Determin-edly she dragged her weary feet up the steps again, only to find that she was right the first time. ODDS AND ENDS . . . Clark Gable's birthday on the "ParnelV get was m hilarious occasion. Fellow-players gave him a cake inscribed to the greatest actor in the world Robert Taylor . . . Joan Crawford has brushed out her curls, wears her hair very straight and plain and uses colorless nail polish. Judy Garland made m tremendous hit singing at a flood benefit, and will get !me bit film roles now. O Western Newspaper Union. |